The same question often gets asked in business. When things are going bad, there is always pressure on the company leadership to make a change to right the course. In the midst of an economic downturn, companies are looking for the right move to keep themselves in contention for dollars that are as tight as ever. You don’t have to look far to see companies that have decided to blow up the team rather than tweak. On the other side of the coin, there are plenty of examples of companies who needed to make changes, but kept putting duct tape on a gaping hole. They go out of business for lack of recognition that they are heading in the wrong direction.

I am not a big fan of blowing things up, although it is sometimes needed. The problem with the dynamite method is that you are starting over, surrendering to the fact that things have been going so bad and nothing is working. Likely, that is not the case. Often it comes at the end of a lot of finger pointing, hand wringing and back stabbing. Blame is not a characteristic that is known for building successful teams. If you want a baseball analogy, take a look at the relationship that NY Yankees owner George Steinbrenner had with his players and management over the years. In the first 23 years of his ownership, George hired and fired 20 managers and 11 general managers. In a love/hate relationship, he hired and fired manager Billy Martin five different times. When he finally got some longevity out of a manager (Joe Torre) and general manager (Brian Cashman), the Yankees won four World Series in five years.

So how do you know when to tweak and when to blow things up? Here are some thoughts from my marketing perspective. A lot of what we do in marketing is centered on understanding the needs of the customer. There are typically some assumptions that go along with any business. Are those assumptions based on the needs of the customer or are they just unsubstantiated hunches from management? For example, you might believe your customer service is second to none and that your customers would never go anywhere else because they just could not get the same kind of service elsewhere. Have you ever tested and measured that assumption? A survey of customers would tell you whether they believe you have superior customer service. A well asked question of your customers would also reveal whether your customer service is enough to keep them coming back to you. If you are not challenging your assumptions, your market can change around you and you will never know it until you are in trouble. Companies that keep a handle on their assumptions by testing them on a regular basis can make informed decisions about the types of changes they need to make to stay competitive in the market.

There is another tendency that can be deadly to business. If your sales staff has lost touch with your customer base so that they are no longer listening to the changing needs of the customer, it is time to make a change. There comes a point when the manager can no longer get the attention of the player and the player is no longer effective in his role on the team. In business, that might mean that you have done a good job of initially engaging your customer and winning a contract, but lately the customer has been disappointed in your performance. How well do you retain your clients? If you asked your personnel what the customer would ask for if they could have anything from your company and you ask the same question of your customers, would you get the same answers?